The Miami Dolphins deemed Tua Tagovailoa not ready to start against the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday Night Football because of a finger injury, but they had him as the backup for Jacoby Brissett. When Brissett went down with a knee injury in the third quarter, the Dolphins inserted Tagovailoa and kept him in the game even after Brissett was cleared to return.
While Tua didn't do anything all that spectacular, he played reasonably well given his injury by completing 8-of-13 passes for 158 yards and rushing for a touchdown in a stunning 22-10 Dolphins victory. The quarterback did fumble once, but it wasn't a turnover and he didn't throw any interceptions.
After this game, it looks like the Dolphins are prepared to make Tagovailoa the unquestioned starter again. There will be a little extra time for him to get healthier now after this Thursday night game. The Week 11 matchup is against the New York Jets.
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Here's NFL Network's Ian Rapaport on the Dolphins' quarterback situation:
From @GMFB: It ended with a big-time leadership moment for #Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa, but it was a winding road to get there. pic.twitter.com/PP7psDJL3i
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 12, 2021
Dolphins head coach Brian Flores has been supportive of Tua all season through thick and thin. Tagovailoa has dealt with multiple injuries and the Deshaun Watson trade rumors, but Flores said before the trade deadline that a healthy Tua would be the starter. Even if that finger is still bothering him a bit, it seems he's going to be good to start moving forward for the second half of the season.
Miami is now 3-7 in 2021 after the big win over Baltimore. The Dolphins would like to see Tagovailoa show some growth the rest of the way, otherwise the Watson rumors will surely pop up again in the offseason.
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